Southern California -- this just in

Student forgotten in jail: UCSD students denounce treatment

May 7, 2012 | 7:36
am

The student government at UC San Diego has denounced the Drug Enforcement Administration for leaving a UCSD student without food, water or access to a toilet for five days after he was put in a detention cell in San Diego.

The student government asked Chancellor Marye Ann Fox to take a "clear stance" on the treatment of engineering student Daniel Chong.

"Daniel Chong's illegal detention reveals how the Drug Enforcement (Administration) wields too much power,'' said Angad Walia, UCSD student and leader of the Southern California chapter of Young Americans for Liberty, the group that brought the issue to the student government.

The DEA has apologized to Chong, who was accidentally left in a holding cell for five days and reportedly drank his own urine to survive. The 23-year-old had been detained after being swept up in a drug raid at an apartment where he was a visitor.

Chong has filed a $20-million claim with the DEA, asserting his treatment was tantamount to torture. U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and several other officeholders have called for an investigation into the case.

Photo: Daniel Chong, a UC San Diego student, says he was forgotten by federal DEA agents and left in a holding cell for five days. The DEA has issued an apology. Credit: K.C. Alfred / U-T San Diego / Associated Press